Urushi, or the art of Japanese lacquerware
Urushi lacquer comes from the lacquer tree of the same name and flourished in Japan over 2,000 years ago. The first lacquer objects date from the late Jōmon period (13,000 to 300 BC). Until the 10th century, although the technique was largely indigenous, the motifs borrowed from Chinese shapes and patterns, before the decisive development of Japaneseurushi during the Nara (710-794) and Heian (794-1185) eras. The maki-e technique, which consists of sprinkling lacquer with gold or silver, broke away from ancestral techniques. The Kamakura period (1185-1333) saw the development of large-scale object decoration, relief lacquerwork and pearl (or raden ) inlay techniques. With the shōguns' great admiration for Chinese products, this period saw the blossoming of new techniques blended with the know-how of the Song and Ming dynasties. Conversely, lacquerware was exported to Korea and China. In the 16th century, the arrival of the Portuguese provided a new market, while Europeans developed a passion for lacquered objects. Later, Queen Marie-Antoinette herself collected them! Since then, Japanese lacquer has enjoyed an ever-growing international renown.
Japanese sculpture, from Buddhist tradition to modernity
In the Land of the Rising Sun, the majority of sculptures are linked to the Buddhist tradition, whose golden age is that of the Kei school, which appeared at the beginning of the Kamakura period (1185-1333) and remained influential until the end of the 19th century. While remaining linked to Buddhism, Kei sculptors contributed to the development of this art form, refining the features of their works. The two great names of this tradition are Unkei (1151-1223) and Kaikei (1183-1223), who, in very different styles, left their mark on the country's artistic history. Numerous works from this period can be found in Nara, like the Niō at Tōdai-ji.
In modern Japan, sculpture inspired by the Western style flourished, particularly in Tokyo, where numerous statues and other sculpted monuments shaped the urban landscape. In the twentieth century, the country gave birth to great artists who left their mark on the history of modern sculpture, such as Isamu Noguchi (1904-1988), who was also a designer. Today, contemporary sculpture is no exception, with leading figures such as Tadashi Kawamata (b. 1953) and Kohei Nawa (b. 1975).
From Chinese influence to Yamato-e
Japanese painting has a very ancient history, as evidenced by decorated objects from the Jōmon (13,000 to 300 BC) and Yayoi (300 BC - 300 AD) periods. It was with the development of Buddhist art in the Nara period (710-794) that painting, mainly murals, began to flourish decisively. This art was strongly influenced by the Sui and Tang dynasties of China, where landscapes were given pride of place. It was only later, at the beginning of the Heian period (794-1185), that yamato-e was born, a distinctly Japanese style of secular painting, more decorative, detailed and inspired by everyday life. From this period, don't miss the landscape screen from the Tô-ji, now on display at Kyoto's National Museum, one of the few treasures from this period still visible. During the Heian and Kamakura periods (1185-1333), painters were to illustrate the lives of clerics as well as the nobility and great national figures, notably those of the imperial court novels. At the same time, a new style of monochrome ink painting originating in China and based on washes was born, but it only really took off during the Muromachi period (1336-1573). Under the Ashikaga regime, landscape painting enjoyed the support of the ruling family and was strongly influenced by Zen. Monks who were also painters and calligraphers, such as the famous Sesshū (1420 - 1506), took up the wash technique to give it a distinctly Japanese style.
From Muromachi (1336-1573) to Meiji, the grandiose Kanō school
The Muromachi era also saw the rise of the famous Kanō school, which, close to power, was to influence the archipelago for several centuries. One of its members, Kanō Motonobu (1476-1559), skilfully blended light, transparent washes with broad ink washes. During the Edo period (1600-1868), the Kanō school decorated residences and palaces, notably Eitoku Kanō (1543-1590), who undertook the decoration of Hideyoshi Toyotomi's residence. Master Tan-yu (1602-1674) decorated the Nikkō tombs and mausoleums in Edo's Shiba Park for the Tokugawa. In Kyoto, he also decorated Nan Zen-ji and the Imperial Palace.
Between realism and formalism, the Maruyama-Shijō school
Faced with the official schools of the time, such as the Kanō School, the Maruyama-Shijō School was created on the initiative of Maruyama Ōkyo (1733-1795) and Matsumura Goshun (1752-1811), two monuments of Japanese painting. The artists of the Maruyama-Shijō school developed a style that synthesized the two major trends of the 18th century: on the one hand, the idealism of the literati promoted by the old schools, which emphasized the decorative dimension of the works, and on the other, realism, which took a precise look at nature, inspired by the Western scientific naturalism brought to Nagasaki by the Dutch.
The print, a revolution in Japanese art
It would be more accurate to speak of xylography, or wood engraving, a technique that enables both images and text to be reproduced, and developed during the Edo period (1603-1868) withukiyo-e, or "images of the floating world". The drawing is first engraved on a block of wood, before being printed on a sheet of paper. While lovers of Japanese prints in Europe often referred to erotic prints - shunga or "springtime images" - the subjects depicted were varied and corresponded to the interests of the urban bourgeoisie of the time, in search of culture and entertainment: popular characters (courtesans, kabuki actors, sumo wrestlers, yōkai), landscapes and monuments. This new urban culture developed first in Kansai, Kyoto and Osaka, then in Edo (now Tokyo). It corresponded to an era of peace and prosperity, of social and economic evolution, accompanied by a change in artistic forms.Ukiyo-e, which enabled inexpensive reproduction on paper, was in tune with the spirit of the times, and its images recalled the fragility of the world and the desire to enjoy the things in life. To name but a few of the great names inukiyo-e, the works of Torii Kiyonaga (1752-1815), Kitagawa Utamaro (1753-1806), Katsushika Hokusaï (1760-1849) and Utagawa Hiroshige (1797-1858) are not to be missed. To do so, visit Tokyo's Ōta Memorial Museum of Art or the tiny, picturesque Kyoto Ukiyo-e Museum.
Meiji (1868-1912), an encounter with Western aesthetics
While the introduction of linear perspective by the Dutch in Nagasaki in the mid-18th century revolutionized the pictorial space, Western techniques played only a superficial role until the Meiji era. The opening up to the West from 1868 onwards led to a craze for European methods, particularly oil painting, which the government began to actively promote. Although the Japanese artists who tried their hand at this initially struggled to free themselves from the style of the European masters, a new direction began to emerge in the 1880s. Nihonga (literally "Japanese painting") incorporated elements of Western art while respecting the aesthetic rules of Japanese tradition.
It was under the influence of Ernest Fenellosa (1853-1908), an American sociologist close to the Kanō painters, that the Tokyo University of Fine Arts was founded in 1887. Its aim was to restore the value of traditional Japanese art while modernizing it, without conforming to European trends. Research multiplied and, as oil painting developed, some artists returned to yamato-e, others to Chinese sources, and still others to sumi-e . Until the end of the Second World War, painting remained closely tied to literary currents. The most representative painters of this period are Meiji Hashimoto (1904-1991), Kokei Kobayashi (1883-1957) and Yasuda Yukihiko (1884-1978). Others sought inspiration in Europe and the United States, such as Foujita (1886-1968).
Photography, from European influence to Japanese reign
Photography was introduced to Japan in 1848 by the Dutch in Nagasaki. One of the first Japanese to adopt the technique was Shimazu Nariakira (1809-1858), a daimyō fascinated by Western knowledge. As Japan became increasingly open in the second half of the 19th century, more photographic equipment began to circulate, and foreigners began to travel the archipelago to capture its people and landscapes, or set up studios there, like the Italian-British photographer Felice Beato (1832-1909). Many Japanese photographers followed, such as Ueno Hikoma (1838-1904) and Shimooka Renjo (1823-1924). The development of the press and the photographic industry in the early 20th century encouraged the growth of photojournalism, with great photographers such as Ken Domon (1909-1990), Ihee Kimura (1901-1974) and Yōnosuke Natori (1910-1962). Although the Second World War weakened the sector, a new impetus took hold in the decades that followed. The country became the leader in photographic technology between the 1960s and 1980s, and many Japanese practitioners honored this leading position, such as Daidō Moriyama (1938), Nobuyoshi Araki (1940) and Hiroshi Sugimoto (1948). Although this trend has diminished since the 1990s, art photography continues to renew itself in the archipelago, with talented artists among the new generations, such as Mika Ninagawa (1972), Akihito Yoshida (1980) or Motoyuki Daifu (1985).
From neo pop art to data artists, a hybrid contemporary scene
Japan's contemporary art scene is rich and diverse, with much to discover beyond neo-pop art stars such as Takashi Murakami (1962). In the field of new technologies, the country is renowned for artists whose work has revolutionized our relationship with multimedia, such as Shiro Takatani (1963) and Ryoji Ikeda (1966). Don't miss the recently opened TeamLab museum in Tokyo, at the cutting edge of digital art. In a more political vein, the archipelago is also endowed with critical artists whose committed works upset the norms of Japanese society, such as Makoto Aida (1965) or Koki Tanaka (1975) and his composite installations. Another strand of contemporary art focuses on the intimate, with delicate, sensitive works by Rei Naito (1961) and Chiharu Shiota (1972). To discover them, visit Tokyo's spectacular Mori Art Museum.
A street art that struggles to gain recognition
Although street art is still largely perceived as vandalism in Japan, in major cities such as Tokyo and Yokohama there are several neighborhoods with beautiful frescoes or clever, discreet works that play with the urban décor. In Shibuya, Harajuku, Shinjuku and Tennozu Isle in particular, the maze of streets offers some marvels to be seen, sometimes painted on store fronts or curtains, the rare places where you don't risk a hefty fine. Take a look at the map of the Koenji Mural City Project (www.bna-hotel.com/projects), which encourages local creativity in one of the city's most underground districts! To name but a few, the "blazes" of local stars include Suiko, Esow and Aiko.
